I have an 01 f150, with 83,000 miles on it. When I normal accelerate it is fine. When I medium accelerate is seems to have a little trouble shifting from first to second then the rest of the shifts are fine. When I hard accelerate it his a lot of trouble shifting from first to second then the rest of the shifting are fine. Is this common? I have owned the truck for almost three years and bought at 51,000 miles. I haven't changed the fluid in it.

Advice, or anyone else have experience with the issue?

Thanks in advance,

Zach

 

What is the fluid level in the transmission?

 

Check it while the engine is running, normal operating temp, and on a level surface. It should be within the cross-hatching marks, and a pinkish red color, and not smell burnt.

 

I checked the fluid and it is about halfway between the cross hatches. It is more of a red color (maybe even considered a dark red) then pink. Might have a little bit of a burn smell to it.

 

Change the fluid. Do a complete exchange, not just a pan drop. An 01 MAY have a drain plug in the torque converter, if yours doesn't, take it to a shop that has an exchange machine.

 

I would suspect an issue with the 1-2 accumulator or the valve body. Maybe a broken spring in the 1-2 accumulator. that is a really common problem.

Let me know if I can help in any way.
D

 

What exactly is an exchange? Since I can't just drop the pan and change the fluid. I don't know anything about an accumulator or springs, honestly transmission scares me a little.

 

An exchange is when a shop hooks up a machine to the cooler lines and starts the engine, which will pump the old fluid out and draw fresh fluid in. Not necessary *IF* the torque converter has a drain plug. There is a procedure to do this yourself without a machine, but it's a bit involved.

If what Darren is saying is correct and if a transmission scares you, it's time to find an honest shop that is willing to look for those issues and not just try to sell you a transmission rebuild.

 

I will google this in a bit to see about the torque converter but I don't know where that is. Transfer case maybe? I know there are drain plugs on there. And wouldn't dropping the pan be a good idea if there is something that is broke, wouldn't it have been picked up by the magnet? Is there a way to gain the knowledge about transmissions? I have never done anything with them that is why I'm a little scared. If I knew more or saw a video I know I would be more comfortable then.

 

The torque converter is between the engine and the transmission. It is essentially two fans, one blowing fluid at the other. At a certain rpm, stall speed, they turn at about the same speed. Then there is a mechanical lockup after it gets up to stall speed. There is a small cover on the bottom of the TC. Remove it and turn the converter to see is it has a drain plug. you can use a screwdriver prying on the flexplate teeth to turn it. My 2000 F150 TC had a drain. My 2002 F150 TC does not. Sometime between the drain was deleted.

 

All 2001 trucks left the factory with a drain plug in the torque converter. Ford stopped installing drain plugs in August, 2001, which was well into 2002 production.

Try this: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/automa...ansmission.htm

 

So you all suggest draining the torque converter and transmission fluids? And one suggest I take the valve body apart. I don't think the fluid is bad, but I can try. How would that, maybe, fix the issue?

 

Sorry for any confusion, I don't suggest taking the valve body apart. That would likely lead to greater issues.

You don't even have to remove the valve body to get to the 1-2 accumulator. You can get to that by draining and removing the pan.

D

 

Alright. Now to figure out where the 1-2 accumulator is, how to diagnose if it's bad, and how to fix. Google is my best friend.

 

I replaced the 1-2 accumulator spring in my 4R70w that was in my 95MarkVIII. It wasn't hard. Dropped the pan. It is located towards the front on the driver's side. Push in the accumulator until you can get the lock ring out and the piston and springs will come out. The Mark VIII had an extremely slow mushy shift. I installed a spring that made it shift quicker. There is an upper and lower spring. I don't remember which one I replaced. The famous Jerry Wroblowski (spelling?) used to participate in the MarkVIII.org board and he recommended it. He tuned a member's Mark VIII that had a hair dryer type supercharger that would do elevens in a quarter.